Washington, DC Area (Linthicum Heights, Maryland), USA June 6-7, 2011 MITAGS An international survey (Michel et al., 2005) has identified over 8,500 sunken shipwrecks in marine waters around the world, including more than 1,500 sunken tank vessels (≥ 150 gross tons) and nearly 7,000 sunken non-tank vessels (≥ 400 gross tons). These wrecks may contain as much as 20 million tons (140 million barrels) of oil and other hazardous materials. Sporadic or continuous leakages or potential sudden massive spillages from these wrecks, 75 percent of which stem from World War II, pose a continual risk across the globe. The problem of potentially-polluting wrecks has long been discussed and recent incidents around the world have caused government agencies and responsible parties to look proactively at preventing catastrophic oil and other chemical releases from long submerged shipwrecks. The risk of oil and other hazardous materials seeping out of sunken shipwrecks is growing yearly, and the likelihood of leakage or even a massive spill occurring increases, as do the potential costs. Taking a proactive rather than a reactive approach to mitigating this risk will save not only dollars in response costs, but also reduce the threat of environmental and socioeconomic damages. From the viewpoint of environmental and economic impacts, there is little difference between oil spilling from a sunken vessel and oil spilling from a modern day vessel casualty, with the exception that, while there is no way to predict the location or timing of the next major oil spill, potentially-polluting wreck sites are known and the probability of an spill event is quantifiable or even inevitable. There is ample evidence that there are a large number of wrecks in U.S. coastal waters that are spills waiting to happen. Sponsored by the American Salvage Association (ASA) and the North American Marine Environmental Protection Association (NAMEPA), this conference, "Wrecks of the World II: Evaluating and Addressing Potential Underwater Threats," will aim to provide an opportunity for an objective review and discussion of the current state of potentially polluting wrecks and to offer considerations to address the problem.

Wrecks of the World II: Evaluating and Addressing Potential Underwater Threats
Conference Agenda

Conference Agenda: Monday, June 6 Registration & Coffee Chairman’s Welcome & Opening Remarks Chairmen: Mauricio Garrido, ASA Clay Maitland, Esq., NAMEPA Plenary Session Overview and Key Developments Since WOW I Conference Moderator: Mauricio Garrido, ASA Threats from Potentially-Polluting Wrecks Panelists:  Dr. Dagmar Schmidt Etkin, ERC Lisa Symons, ONMS Jon Waldron, Esq., Blank Rome LLC Coffee Break State-of-the-Art Research on Wrecks Dr. Christopher Reddy, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute Michael Barrett, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute LUNCH LUNCHEON KEYNOTE ADDRESS Congressman Elijah E. Cummings, Senior Member – House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Afternoon Breakout Sessions SESSION A: Regulatory Issues for Potentially Polluting Wrecks Moderator: Clay Maitland, Esq., NAMEPA Panelists:  Jan de Boer, IMO Legal Committee James Shirley, Esq., JTS Marine LLC CDR Edward Bock, U.S. Coast Guard  SESSION B: Risk Assessment Issues for Potentially-Polluting Wrecks Moderator: Mauricio Garrido, ASA Panelists:  John Wagner, ONMS David Conlin, National Park Service Dr. Deborah French McCay, Applied Science Associates, Inc. Jordan Stout, NOAA OR&R  Coffee Break SESSION A: Financial Issues for Potentially-Polluting Wrecks Moderator: Clay Maitland, Esq., NAMEPA Panelists:  Craig Bennett, National Pollution Fund Center Jose Maura, IOPC Fund Ulrika Leikvang, Skuld North America SESSION B: Costs and Impact Issues from Leaking Wrecks Moderator: Mauricio Garrido, ASA Panelists:  Dr. Dagmar Schmidt Etkin, ERC Dr. Jacqueline Michel, Research Planning, Inc. Scott Wahl, Avalon Public Information Officer ADJOURN DINNER at Nick’s Fish HouseOn Baltimore Waterfront (Casual Attire) Conference Agenda: Tuesday, June 7 Continental Breakfast Chairman’s Opening Remarks Chairmen: Mauricio Garrido, ASA Clay Maitland, Esq., NAMEPA Remediation of the CHEHALIS at Pago Pago CAPT Michael Day, U.S. Coast Guard Plenary Session Wreck Remediation – Case Studies  Moderator: Bob Urban, PCCI Panelists:  Zachary Malinoski, T&T Bisso, LLC John Witte, DonJon Marine Co., Inc. Devon Grennan, Global Diving &Salvage, Inc. Dave Usher, Marine Pollution Control Coffee Break Plenary Session Wreck Remediation – Case Studies  Moderator: Bob Urban, PCCI  Panelists:  Tim Parker, Parker Diving Joseph Farrell, Resolve Marine Group Robert Tyson, Svitzer Salvage Rich Habib, Titan Salvage LUNCH LUNCHEON KEYNOTE ADDRESS Dr. James Delgado, Director of the Maritime Heritage Program, NOAA, Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Plenary Session Challenges for Government and Industry Moderator: Clay Maitland, Esq., NAMEPA Panelists:  John Allen, National Response Corporation Carleen Lyden-Kluss, NAMEPA Heather Parker, U.S. Coast Guard Ulrika Leikvang, Skuld North America Coffee Break Plenary Session The Way Forward – Goals and Initiatives Moderator: Clay Maitland, Esq., NAMEPA Panelists:  Lisa Symons, ONMS Jan de Boer, IMO Legal Committee Nicola Goodwyn, ABP Marine Environmental Research (UK) CDR Edward Bock, U.S. Coast Guard                        Adjourn

Special Thanks to Our Meeting Sponsors: